NEW DELHI , In 1700, India was the richest country in the world. We produced 25% of global GDP. We had the world's largest economy. We were the center of trade, culture, and civilization. Now we produce 3% of global GDP. We rank 142nd in GDP per capita. We went from ruling the world to begging for aid. This is not history. This is shame.
The fall was not sudden. It was gradual. It started with colonization, 200 years of systematic looting. The British didn't just take our resources. They destroyed our industries. They broke our systems. They made us dependent. They made us poor.
But colonization ended in 1947. What happened after? We had independence. We had democracy. We had potential. But we failed. We failed to industrialize. We failed to educate. We failed to develop. We failed to catch up.
Dr. Amartya Sen, Nobel laureate, explains: 'India had everything, resources, people, potential. But we squandered it. We focused on the wrong things. We built temples instead of schools. We celebrated the past instead of building the future. We became prisoners of our own history.'
The numbers tell the story. In 1947, India and China had similar GDPs. Now China's GDP is 5 times larger. In 1947, India and South Korea had similar GDPs. Now South Korea's GDP is 10 times larger. We didn't just fail to grow. We failed to even try.
But here's what they don't tell you: the fall continues. We're still falling. We're still failing. We're still celebrating the past while ignoring the present. We're still building temples instead of schools. We're still prisoners of history.
The solution is not in celebrating the past. It's in building the future. It's in learning from history, not living in it. It's in moving forward, not backward. It's in becoming what we once were, leaders, not followers.
But until that happens, we'll keep falling. We'll keep failing. We'll keep being ashamed of what we've become while celebrating what we once were.